Dragon

As the song changed a few of her friends drifted off the floor to get new drinks. Kae stayed with the remainder of the group, dancing with them and anyone who drifted near enough. She wasn't paying much mind to anything else until she backed into someone, "Sorry," she apologized quickly as she turned toward the person only to stop short when she saw who it was. @Morrigan

Kae hadn't noticed Richie yet. The possibility hadn't crossed her mind - it wasn't the kind of club she'd have thought someone like him would check out. Not when he could drink for free at one of the best in town. She'd finished one drink and was on the floor dancing with her friends and enjoying the buzz. @Morrigan

"The thought might have crossed my mind." @Morrigan

"What do you mean?" @Morrigan

During those first few days, Kae kept anxiously waiting for some Redford thug to appear and drag her back. It was a little bewildering when it didn't happen, especially considering the rumor about her debt and the buy out had gotten well around her circles. To her chagrin they all pretty much made the natural assumption about how and why that had happened. She did stay well away from the Nakada's territory in the following weeks, though. The incident with the box had given her more than her fill of that. After a while she started to relax a little. So when a few friends invited her

"I guess that's not wrong," he laughed. @Morrigan

"Yeah it's a good thing I love you. Definitely wouldn't be running for 'fun'" he held up air quotes, "for anyone else." @Morrigan

He kept acting like she'd wanted any of this. Kae pushed that out of mind, though. As far as she was concerned that was a "you're free to go" and she was more than happy to take him up on that. By some twist of luck not only had the judge let her keep her pack on after he'd cuffed her, the money she'd earned was still in there. She hadn't gotten a chance to pay off her dealer before the chaos had broken out... and since the entire den had been cleaned out and everything confiscated, it was safe to keep the money. First time she'd ever benefited from dirty law enforcement.

Kae huffed as the sweats hit her in the chest, lifting a hand to stop them at the last minute, "Bathroom?" she asked. She was tired and hurting and sick of arguing circles. @Morrigan

"If you remember correctly I never asked for help in the first place," she glared after him, tugging irritably at the cuffs - which of course only made them tighten and pissed her off more. @Morrigan

"If you wanted to help you'd ask what I need instead of just assuming you know," she snapped, pulling away again, "let me out of these things." @Morrigan

"You just get off on torturing me." @Morrigan

Kae yelped and cursed, jerking her leg fully away from him as she sucked a breath through her teeth. Fuck she just wanted to kick him. "Between fifteen and seventeen management still has to verify guardian consent," she said once the sting had eased, "and all I've got is an expired state ID. Last time I applied for something above the board I got picked up by the fucking cops." @Morrigan

"You realize that means we're gonna have a lot of runners tomorrow," he joked. @Morrigan

The rest of his shift didn't do much to ease Seth's irritation with the night as a whole. He was still annoyed with his brother, and everything else. He let himself in quietly once he was finally home, moving to the fridge to grab a beer out. "Hey baby," he looked up as she came in, "you sure you don't want to take an extra day?" @Morrigan

Kae scoffed at the question. Obviously he'd never had to go get a summer job in school. "Yes I've tried. You need signatures from legal guardians, school waiver, multiple forms of identity verification - ow," she pulled her leg back and glared at him briefly. Never minding all those issues, she'd also gotten picked up by the cops last time she'd tried. She wasn't going back into the system again. @Morrigan

There may have been some truth to that. Since she'd mostly managed to wiggle through the cracks in the system, Kae found a certain level of freedom in her life - when she was making ends meet. She didn't have memories of ever having much, so the ultra spartan lifestyle didn't bother her. It was better than being bounced around a desperately over crowded foster system. At least she had a little control. Or she'd had a little control. Now instead of a sense of freedom, albeit tense at times, she felt constantly trapped and anxious. "You boogie assholes are the worst," Kae rolle

"There's a difference between making the rules and living under them and you've never been under them to know," she scowled. @Morrigan

"Such a martyr," she countered sarcasticly, scowling at his back, "you know for someone who's family all but runs the city you don't seem to actually know anything about how it works." @Morrigan

"How's that silver spoon feel up your ass?" @Morrigan

"Why do you go to a place like that?" @Morrigan

"So what?" she asked, giving him a nasty look. @Morrigan

"Yeah," Seth reached his arm up to clasp the side of Richie's shoulder briefly, "just don't get mad if it takes a day or two. Shit's all chaos right now." He let his hand drop and turned to let himself out, leaving his brother to deal with whatever Big Brother bullshit he'd taken on. @Morrigan

"You gotta be more careful with this, man. I'll try to keep them off your back a little while longer," Seth promised his brother grudgingly. He thought this was about the dumbest thing he'd ever seen his brother pull, but he did believe it when Richie said he was trying to do something decent, "I'm gonna need those back," Seth said, handing his brother a thin micro card that would unlock the cuffs on the girl, just once, "just leave 'em in the shop, I'll pick them up." @Morrigan

"Means right now it isn't just Duchess I'm worried about when we investigate a scene." @Morrigan